What do Uber (taxi services), Airbnb (lodging services), Facebook (social networking), Alibaba (e-commerce), and Paypal (online payment) have in common? The obvious things include: All of them drive their core operations on internet platforms and have astronomically high valuations without any notable physical assets. Not so apparent, however, is the fact that they excel at using Application Program Interfaces (APIs) to drive competitive advantage.

Wave after wave of IT has introduced a level of disruption unparalleled in history. But these challenges present enormous opportunities. At the center of everything? Connected devices and the Internet of things.

Apigee has launched a new portal for firms to manage their IoT services like connected devices and the corresponding apps that control them.

While there is clearly a huge amount of interest in all things relating to the Internet of Things, the management of thousands of interconnected devices is going to give even the largest of IT organizations cause for pause. To address that challenge, Apigee this week unveiled Apigee Link, a set of REST APIs that organizations can embed into any device connected to the Internet.

The digital health imperative is upon us. With advancements in technology, the opportunities are bound only by our imagination. Recent investments in digital health are telling signs of the disruptive forces at play and the future that is just waiting to happen.